Silent Shadows
by Snape's Only Eden
Summary: Her knees hit the concrete as the news hit her heart. Who is this Torin! And why is she destined to tear her life apart from her mother's womb. She had dreamed of this life and now the shadows watch as it all falls apart. Before the Epilogue in DH.
1. Prologue

Prologue

The Burrow will never understand what hit it. One day, out of nowhere, the every one was running around, crazily preparing for a mass of people and the next day, there were crowds running to and fro. It was supposed to be the biggest wedding of the century-next to The-Boy-Who-Lived-Again's. This was the wedding of The-Boy-Who-Lived-Again's-Sidekicks'.

Everything was perfect. The gnomes had been thrown. The garden tamed. The odds and ends that cluttered their yard were removed, and the chickens hidden away in their coop. Chairs were lined up neatly in the back yard, and a white carpet traveled from the Burrow's back door to a alter 10 yards away. The Weasley family alone was huge, and then there were also friends from school, from the Order, and even a couple of the Hogwarts staff. The Wealeys' were thanking Merlin they had a huge yard. As the seats filled and every one took their place, the crowd fell silent waiting and watching the groom with sharp eyes.

Ron stood at top the altar dressed in white dress robes that looks relatively new, but had obviously been taken in to hide his tall frame and build. Next to him was Harry, also in white dress robes, but like every thing else he had ever bought they were new and out shown the groom.

Ginny, Lavender and Pavarti all stood on the Bride's side dressed in soft peach dress robes. Both Ginny and Pavarti had tears in their eyes, but the look on Lavender's face told all who looked closely, that she did not want to be there.

Out of the corner of the yard the sound of the bridal march began. Everyone stood and turned to look at the Burrow's back door anxiously waiting for the bride to appear. A minute passed, yet still no bride was at the door.

Percy stood from his seat in the far back and walked over to the door. He opened it slowly, lest she be standing behind it, and looked inside. When his head re-emerged it pale. He said nothing as he swung the door open to reveal…No one was there. The crowd gasped, and Ron looked shocked. Percy walked into the house, and searched it. He returned a minute later, with a note clutched in his hand. He walked up to where Ron stood, and handed it to his younger brother. Ron took the note and opened it. It was only one line, written in pretty, feminine writing. _Sorry I couldn't go through with it._

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Eden's A/N- Well, there it is! The prologue. Chapter one is currently under construction. Please review and let us know what you think. This is a collaboration fic between eden snape and Alan'sOnly. Thank you for reading!

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Alan'sOnly's A/N- Teh Heh! I haven't writtin a new story in a while and i come back with a co author! How you all have happy reading! 


	2. Torin

Chapter 1: Torin

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Hermione Granger left the small flat she shared with her fiancée, and stepped into the bright May sunlight. The wedding was looming, it was only two months away. She was very busy between planning the wedding and attending the University and she barely even saw Ron these days, only briefly every morning when she left for school, or to go over wedding details, or at night when he came home late and she was busy studying. Hopefully once they were married, they would have more time for each other. A smile played across her face, as it always did when she thought of the wedding. It was going to be great, the best night of her life, except for the night when Harry had defeated Voldemort. She saw an old friend from school and ran ahead to walk beside her.

"Hello Parvati, are you going to the University too?"

"Hello Hermione. Yes I am. I heard about your wedding, I can't believe you are still going to go through with it."

"What do you mean Parvati, still _go through with it_?"

Parvati turned red and stopped walking. "You mean you don't know," she said turning to face her. "He said he told you and you took it well."

"Who said they told me what! Ron?!?"

Parvati paled. "I didn't want to be the one to tell you Hermione…"

"TELL ME WHAT!" yelled Hermione, red in the face and looking both angry and worried. "What happened?"

Parvati whispered something quickly to Hermione, then turned and apparated away.

Hermione stood, looking at the spot where Parvati had occupied only seconds before. Then the ground rushed up to meet her and she knew no more. The man trailing her arrived to catch her before her head hit the pavement.

"Do you know who brought me here?" Hermione asked the St. Mungo's healer

"No, a man came in, deposited you on the bed and left. You'll be fine; you just had a dizzy spell, nothing to worry about."

Hermione signed her release papers and apparated to the grocery store in Diagon Alley. After purchasing the groceries, she then headed towards Flourish and Blotts, to pick up some new books for school. After a while, she left, her arms laden with bags. She never noticed the man following her.

"Hermione! You're late!" Ron whined as he looked up form the Daily Profit.

Hermione stumbled though the front door with her arms full with the books and groceries. "Shut it Ron," she growled as she trampled to the kitchen her footfalls heavy from exhaustion. The thud of the food hitting the cluttered counter top made Ron grimace and quickly come to his feet. He helped her put the bags away and then he grinned as the turned to face her.

"Good thing it's your day off tomorrow! This place needs cleaned!" With that he turned and went back in to the living room.

Hermione didn't reply, she just sighed and went about pushing things from the stove and making dinner. When it was ready she called Ron over.

He looked at the food and muttered, "Oh great! This _again!_"

Hermione looked ready to explode. "Then don't eat it!" she yelled, and she vanished his dinner. "Make your own!" Then she stood up and stormed off to her room, locking the door, and putting up wards so Ron couldn't get in.

"Find a child by the name of Torin…Her mom will have the answers…" Pavarti's words were cryptic and no matter how many times she thought them over she couldn't understand why she would've said that to her. Why now? What would this 'Torin' have to say to her?

Hermione looked up and whipped her tears away as the slamming of the front door boomed though the house. Ron was off again. Last time he left like this he didn't come back for a week…

She stumbled to the door un-warding it and then slipping though it. The house looked like a tornado had just hit an already trashed room. Ron had thrown a fit and it had been a bad one. He had made the kitchen look like a four year old had been left unsupervised in it for a long time. A soft sigh escaped her lips. She would have a long night ahead of her…

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_A/N- This is the real Chapter 1. There must have been a mistake when we uploaded. Sorry._


	3. An Unexpected Bump

Chapter 2: An Unexpected Bump

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Hermione spend two hours cleaning up the mess Ron had created. After she had finished she went off to bed. When she woke up in the morning, Ron still hadn't returned home. She wondered where he was. Getting up, she was hit with a wave of nausea and ran into the bathroom, retching. When she was finished, she showered and dressed, then decided to apparate to the Three Broomsticks for breakfast.

She apparated there, stifling a wave of nausea. She entered the Three Broomsticks,

and took a table in the back; hidden from most of the other patron's view she knew she didn't look her best. She looked when the bell over the door twinkled, Parvati entered with Lavender Brown who was heavy with child. Lavender looked around and spotted the bushy haired female in the back her eyes widened in surprise. She quickly whispered something into Parvati's ear and turned quickly to leave. Parvati shook her head then walked to the back and slid uninvited into the booth in front of Hermione.

"What was that about?" Hermione questioned.

"Nothing…" Parvati said shaking her head and sighing. "She didn't feel like lunch…"

Hermione laughed and nodded. "So who's the lucky bastard that knocked her up…I didn't see a wedding ring…" Years of pouring over books still hadn't dulled her eyesight.

Parvati laughed and ran a hand though her black hair, a nervous twitch that Hermione remembered from their school years. "Not too sure…she keeps it a big secret… He's involved with some one else…" She replied cryptically.

Before Hermione could press her further Rosemerta came over to their booth. Hermione ordered bacon, eggs, and toast and a cup of coffee. Parvati just ordered coffee.

"So…does the baby have a name yet?" Hermione asked cocking her head.

Parvati took her time going over the options, giving the food enough time to come. She then busied herself with the food in front of her, picking at it nervously.

"Well, come off it! Has she decided?" Hermione laughed only slightly irritated.

"Well it was between Jessalbella or…Torin…" Parvati spoke slowly then took a long sip of her coffee.

"And?" Hermione's voice wavered. She was hoping against hope that this was not the right person…the one that Parvati had told her to find but a day before. Did Parvati remember telling her anything? Her stomach dropped like a rock as she saw Parvati's face blanche.

"Oh god Parvati…tell me she choose Jessalbella…" Hermione pleaded she was fully ready to fall to her knees and kiss Parvati's feet for ever more if she would just agree. But Parvati's silence screamed something totally different. It made her stomach hurt and want to release her stomach of what little food she had in it.

"Torin…"Parvati said almost like a whisper on the wind.

"Oh gods…" Hermione said her face becoming one of pure horror and terror.

"I'm Sorry…" Parvati apologized quickly. She left two Knuts and three Sickles but before she could say anything else, the twinkling of the bell told of her that Parvati had left in a mighty rush.

Hermione began to breath quickly she left a hand full of coins on the table not caring if she over paid. She was able to stop her sobs until she was outside, and a cool breeze hit her. She stumbled over into an alley, as the tears began to fall, unchecked, from her eyes. She fell to the ground in an undignified heap. She continued to sob unable to get up... She was so incased in her sobs that she hadn't even heard the footsteps approaching her. She felt some one grasp her chin tenderly and lift her face wiping away the tears, and drawing her against him. The person whispered to her, in a familiar voice, that she couldn't place at the moment, and let her cry against him, whispering soothing words in her ear, and stroking her hair. As she began to come to her senses the stranger stood and escaped back into the crowds of Diagon Alley, leaving her with his black silk handkerchief and nothing more.

She sat there for a few more moments, composing herself, before finally standing up on shaky legs. She made her way out of the alley, people shooting her curious looks when they saw her tear streaked face and realized she was Hermione Granger, war heroine. As if Hermione Granger couldn't possible be upset, she was engaged to Ronald Weasley, hero, The-Boy-Who-Lived's sidekick.

_Yes, _she thought to herself._ Engaged to an adulterer, who is cheating on me with his old girlfriend, who happens to be pregnant with his child._ Tears burned behind her eyes, and she blinked them back, and stopped. Turning on the spot, she apparated home.

She went inside, Ron still no where to be found, and sat on the couch, contemplating everything she had learned this morning. _Torin…Ron and Lavender's child…_The very thought made bile rise in her throat. _He was HER fiancé. She loved him. Maybe it wasn't a passionate love, but it was secure…or had been._

She couldn't believe she had sat in the middle of alley way crying. _If it hadn't been for that man she might still be there…_

The sudden thought made her sit up. She had never gotten a glimpse of his face! All she had was this handkerchief. She pulled it out of her pocket and studied it. It was black silk, with a green and silver snake emblazoned on the lower left corner.

_And that voice…It had sounded so familiar…where had she heard it before, she was certain she had…_

Her musings were interrupted as the front door slammed loudly. Ron was home.

He stormed into the living room and sat down unceremoniously in the recliner, barely looking at her.

"Where have you been?" demanded, her eyes narrowed in anger.

"Out." Was his only reply, as he removed the Daily Prophet from under his arm and opened it, reading the Wizarding Comics.

She huffed in annoyance and went to her bedroom, lying on the bed. _Should she confront him? How would he react? What if Parvati was wrong? She'd sleep on it a couple of nights…when she was calmer, she would confront him _she decided, as she was gripped with another wave of nausea.

She ran into the bathroom and retched, the rinsed out her mouth, and went back to lie in the bed. The last thing she remembered as she drifted off was the stranger's voice, murmuring in her ear, _'It will be all right Hermione.'_

When she woke up, several hours later, the first thing she remember was, _He called me Hermione? What does that mean? Do I know him closely? _

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__A/N- We have made a new decision. Due to other fics we are currently writing, all Chapters will not exceed 1,500 words, unless necessary. However, we will try to update quicker, I'm sorry for the long wait. I've been busy, and been trying to catch up with school work and balance fun and work. ) What can I say, I like to party!_

_Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, some of you are on the right track and guessed correctly, Ron has a 'love child'! The bastard! Let's see who catches this Chapter's clues and guesses…well, I don't want to give it away. _

_In about two Chapters, Hermione will confront Ron. Things will not end well…_

_As for the stranger, we all know who he is…right?_


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